The Emporia weekly news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1881-1889, 1887-08-11
OUR NEW mExICAN LErrER
pecial Correspondence of raE NEWS.


Special Correspondence of TaE NEWS.
Since writing my Last to you I have
been viewing the landscape over, and
have seen somevery fascinating sights
to the eye of anyone having love for the
beautiful or ancient. 1t is hardly worth
while to visit the old countries across
the Atlantic to see marvellous things,
or sights of the lives and works Of those
who lived long before Columbus planted
his flag on the American continent, for
such things are to be seen in the terri
tory of New Mexico. should be very
glad had I the power of the ready
writer so 1 could put on paper things
as viewed by your humble servant, but
as have not will tell it in my own
way. took run down the Santa Fe
railroad forty miles, or up, for it is
higher than this, and in order to get
| up the grade the grade the road in
places is laid out similar to the letter S
or more so. The country between
here and there is what Kansas people
would call broken in places. The noun
tains reach far up towards the stars,
and most of the way is partially covered
with pine and cedar trees of various
sizes and shapes, the talleSt timber
| being almost invariably on the sides of
| the mountains. And the reason is that
most of the large trees on the low lands
have been cut for railroad and other
| purposes.
The Mexicans have occasionally a
| pole house, plaStered with the native
| soil, or what is more likely an adobe,
| almost invariably one story. l got on
at station called Rowe, situated on
| the side of the mountain, facing east;
a very pretty place, in grove Of pines
| and cedarS. 1t is an important station
for the railroad company, as they have
two large water tanks, the water being
pumped from the PacoS river, over d
mile to the east, and the citizens draw
| their supply from these tanks.
/ arrived after ten at night, took a
good sleep, and next morning in COM
pany with E. Newsam, assistant i'm
| igration agent for the Santa Fe railroad
company, we hired two ponies, hitched
to blackboard and drove up a canon as
far as we could, then tied up the team
and started up the mountain, nearly
half mile high, and before we reached
the mesa or level land on top it seemed
as though it might be two miles high;
but we found plenty of seats on the
rocks and often made use of them to
rest. The mesa is part timber and part
prairie and makes splendid pasture for
all kinds of stock; and some of 1t good
farm land. Water can be had at Vari-
GUS depths, from twenty to eighty feet,
and it is good. Land subject to home
stead and entry. We found it but lit
tie trouble to go down hill without be-
ing kicked.)
After dinner we took our team and
went to look at the old Pacos Mission,
said to have been built over three hum
dred years ago by the Spanish priests,
and the walls, made of adobe bricks,
are still standing, fifteen feet high.
Near it is an old fertilization, built by
the Pueblo Indians before they were
conquered by the Spaniards. 1t is
about two hundred feet long by seven
ty-five feet wide. The houses were
! built of stone, some of them said to be
seven stories high. 1t had court in
the center, with two basins for holding
water, one at each end, 1t is now
in ruins, and other lesser ruins
: are near. giving evidence that the
Pueblows were a determined and pow
erful people. Their supposed god
MonteZuma, when he died promised tC
return in time; and they had such con.
: fidence in the belief that they kept
their sacred fires burning for over three
hundred years, or until, as tradition
has it, he returned and took up the sa
tain peak near by; and of course he did
for 1 saw his footprints made in the
solid rocks from which he took his
flight. 1t even shows the prints OF
each toe and also the print of the little
angles foot that accompanied him.
: Our next object of interest was al
, artificial pond, covering about twenty
acres, made for the purpose of furnish
ing ice for the use of the Santa Fe rail
road. The water is pumped from thu
Pacos river, half a mile away. But il
: has not proved grand success so fal
as ice is concerned, as the proprietor in
formed us he had obtained but ont
: good crop, owing to the mildnesS of the
? winter; but it has proved success fol
: fish, Mr.. Duckerow, the proprietor
having stocked it with German carp
A few were put in three years ago
and are now fifteen inches or oVel
, in length. We were invited to take
a ride in the boat, on the rear end o.
which net was suspended, and whilst
the proprietor propelled the boat
We used the dip net and soon had q
: very nice carp about six inches il
! length, which made us fine supper
They are about as good as mountain
: trout. In my next will tell you about
the Hot Springs near here. etc. Thu
Misses Dixon and Jackson are max
ing stop here, and are perfectly en-
chanted with climate and scenery.
Yours truly, VERDANT.
East Los Vegas, N. NJ, Aug. 8, 1887
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